Michael Keaton changed his name from Michael Douglas because the actors union only allows one person to be registered under each name. Meanwhile, Tina Fey changed her name for purely aesthetic reasons.UPI and Everett Collection

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If you’ve ever thought that a celebrity was destined for stardom purely because they have a cool name, chances are it’s not their real moniker.

Thousands of actors and musicians have adopted stage names for a myriad of reasons.

Some think they’ll stand out from the crowd with a catchier name, others just really dislike what their parents called them at birth.

A handful of actors have been forced to change their names because their union in the US only allows one person to be registered under that title, such as a Batman star who had to change his surname to ‘Keaton’ because there was already someone in the system called Michael Douglas.

Here are just some of the stars that you’ll be surprised to know have changed their names.